LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Sunday

Mar 2, 2014 at 2:00 AM

Doesn't it seem just a little bit stupid that after signing several absurd gun-control bills, the governor of California is releasing murderers and child molesters who were sentenced to life in prison for their crimes. What in God's name is this man thinking? — Richard Cody, Applegate

Doesn't it seem just a little bit stupid that after signing several absurd gun-control bills, the governor of California is releasing murderers and child molesters who were sentenced to life in prison for their crimes. What in God's name is this man thinking? — Richard Cody, Applegate

Bravo to James Horner for his informative guest opinion on education in the Sunday Mail Tribune. A confused and torn public, though amenable to providing adequate compensation for our teachers, is aware that the financial liabilities incurred by the PERS debacle continue to hinder meaningful progress in addressing solutions to many critical needs of our state.

Avoiding inflammatory, simplistic rhetoric (teachers are underpaid vs. teachers are greedy), Mr. Horner focused on the underlying problems that beset the present system and offers a blueprint for the future, a future that would introduce new concepts that would painlessly boost teacher productivity along with cost savings.

Mr. Horner's proposed modifications have proven to be successful in other venues and would be helpful in solving or easing some of the problems that precipitated the bitter imbroglio that divided our community in recent weeks.

That Mr. Horner has devoted much time and thought to the subject is more than obvious. It is comforting to know that, though retired, he continues to offer his expertise in this field as a member of the Medford School District Budget Committee. — Bob Warren, Medford

Interesting cross-section of letters Feb. 24 regarding climate change. Mr. Young uses scientific doublespeak and arcane statistics to promulgate his views, while Mr. Sevick simply tells us that "man-caused climate change is a left-wing scam designed to promote socialism."

The facts are that climate disruption is known to be responsible for the super storms, droughts and wildfires that communities are experiencing today, and fossil-fuel conglomerates are turning a deaf ear to the societal problems caused by carbon pollution in terms of increased health costs and environmental devastation. We will all be paying a heavy price for their callous disregard of the consequences of providing "cheap" fossil fuels.

The White House's Office of Management and Budget is working on something called the "social cost of carbon," which is a measure of the economic damage being done by carbon pollution (Google "EPA: The Social Cost of Carbon"). This promises to be an objective evaluation of the data in terms that the average citizen like me understands, and will provide a blueprint for building America's clean-energy economy.

Write the White House and express your desire for a clear and honest report on the true cost of carbon "footprinting" to society. — Michael Mace, Medford